In order to function, electronic equipment generally needs electrical contact between wires and cables in order to propagate electrical power.
For example, engine windings, bobbins, transformers and power generators use metallic terminals to establish an electrical contact between two wires, enabling the propagation of electric power among the various wires and cables of which the device is comprised.
Currently, this contact can be obtained by way of metallic terminals that use crimp application. In this case, contact is achieved by way of a tube comprising projections and teeth. The projections perforate the isolation layer of the magnetic wire, causing the exposed conductor to be compressed towards the teeth, creating an electrical connection between the metallic tube and the magnetic wire.
However, in order to establish contact between magnetic wires and multi-wire cables, the latter must be pre-stripped. Additionally, said device has certain limitations, since the multi-wire cables must be placed in a specific position, which may hamper the correct positioning thereof.
Another disadvantage of terminals that use crimping technology arises from the fact that the pre-stripped wire and the terminal are deformed when high pressure is exerted thereon. This requires careful handling and constant monitoring of the terminal.
Isolation layer of a wire is understood to be both the plastic layer that incases copper wires and multi-wire cables, and the layer of varnish applied to magnetic wires, having the same purpose of isolating the internal conductor part from the outside world.
Another device currently used to establish contact between magnetic wires and multi-wire cables employs the isolation displacement connector (IDC) concept. According to this concept, the isolated wire is pressed into a slot designed to displace isolation and remove oxides through deformation in a given place of the plastic.
In this case, there is no need for prior stripping of the multi-wire cable, and two wires having the same diameter can be simultaneously placed in the same terminal. The metallic interface is free of contaminants, which renders the electrical contact stable. Moreover, there is no need to use large machines to establish contact.
The terminal of the prior art presents two openings to receive the multi-wire cable and the magnetic wire. However, the opening that receives the multi-wire cable has an open end. As the multi-wire cable and the isolating material to be removed are thick, a high mechanical tension is required to insert the cable into the opening. This strains the terminal, and may lead to a permanent deformation of the opening, consequently generating deficiencies in the electrical conductivity.
To reduce this undesirable effect, the terminal is made of a double-thickness premilled raw material, the larger thickness being designed to house the channel where the multi-wire cable will be connected. The use of this double-thickness premilled raw material results in increased production difficulty and higher costs for the end product.
Furthermore, the multi-wire cable is inserted in an opposite direction to the magnetic wire. Accordingly, two termination cycles are required to achieve electrical contact of the wires with the terminal.
Another embodiment of the prior art refers to a terminal having two sets of parallel channels, for use in applications that undergo vibration. In this case, one of the channels is slightly wider than the other, in order to absorb the vibration in the cable, preventing loss of electrical contact between the cable and the terminal, thus guaranteeing greater connection reliability.
Nevertheless, just like the simple contact terminal, the parallel channels that receive the multi-wire cable are open-ended. Thus, the terminal has the same disadvantages as those mentioned above, such as the increase of channel width owing to the high mechanical tension needed to remove the isolation layer of the cable at the open end, resulting in deficiencies in electrical conductivity.